The Train
by CatrinaSL
Summary: The commute home is long and noisy, but reminiscing about the past comforts Mori... until he runs into someone he does not expect.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Neither Ouran High School Host Club nor its characters are my property, as they were created and are masterfully weaved by Bisco Hatori. I just like to make them blush at each other.

**Author's Note:** This is most likely a drabble unless I get shouted at enough. And it will take a lot of shouting. Enjoy!

* * *

Morinozuka Takashi sighed. His day had been long and his train car of choice was packed. He ignored the jostling of bodies as he thought back to his days with Mitsukuni at the dojo, before his family "helped" him get his cushy office job. Though he did find the time on the weekends to go to the dojo, Mitsukuni was there almost as rarely as he was, so their chances of bumping into each other were very slim.

He glanced at the young couple across the car, cuddling close, sporting their high school uniforms, as the young man shilded the young woman from the bustle of the crowd. They blushed at one another, and Takashi smiled. He remembered the good times in high school and the antics of a certain Host Club.

He thought of Haruhi, and the great times the Host Club had after she joined. Although they had all been close friends, she was the one he missed the most (besides his childhood friend, of course). He hadn't seen her since she had left Tamaki's graduation party in a huff two years before.

The train jostled violently, knocking Takashi out of his thoughts and into the person next to him. There was a loud "Don't TOUCH me!" and the man he had bumped into was shoved back against him.

Takashi knew immediately what had happened. It occurred all the time on the train. His hand clamped down on the chikan's shoulder.

"Hey."

"C-can I help you?" Takashi knew that he was intimidating, and now so did this man. The train jerked to a stop, and Takashi took the train's opening doors as an opportunity to get rid of the pervert held tightly in his grip. Just as the doors began to close, he pushed the man off of the train. Takashi regretted that there was not enough time to mess up the offender properly, but with so many people around, what could you do? At least he had left him with a bruise on his shoulder that would make him think twice before molesting girls on the train again.

"Ah, thank you!" The girl was short and petite, with khaki capris and flowered sandals, shoulder length dark hair and glasses. The kind of girl anyone would go out of their way to protect. She managed to pick up her book and backpack before the train started moving again, but she lurched against Takashi when it jerked to a start.

"You're welcome," he boomed, as he caught her arm to prevent her body from smashing against his inappropriately.

She looked up, her amber eyes full of surprise. "Mori-sempai?"

"Haruhi," his voice portrayed none of his shock. It sounded to Haruhi like he had known she was there the whole time.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, then noticing his loosened tie, said, "going home from work?"

He nodded.

"I just finished with midterms," she told him with a sigh. "I'm a pre-law student at Todai, did you know that?"

He shook his head.

"It's pretty tough, but I'm enjoying it," she smiled at him as the train stopped again to shuffle people on and off. "Do you take this train a lot?"

He nodded.

"I'm on it every day at this time! I wonder why we've never run into each other before?"

He smiled.

The train lurched and Haruhi fell toward him again. He caught her, but the press of people who had entered the car pushed them closer together. Haruhi glared at the person behind her, but Mori put a protective arm around her waist and pulled her closer to his chest.

Her blush was almost louder than her quiet "thank you." Haruhi was silent for the duration of the redness of her face, and Mori smiled at the situation. It made him feel like he was back in high school again, with Haruhi's blush, the smell and the brush of her hair on his chin, someone to protect again...

"This is my stop, sempai," Haruhi said quietly as the train came to a brusque halt. Mori released her and she stepped away from his protective bubble. The doors opened, and she exited the train with a wave and a "hope to see you next week, sempai!"

The doors closed, and Mori's gaze drifted over to the couple still cuddling across the car. The girl caught his eye and winked knowingly. The train jostled and continued on its way down the track.

* * *

**Additional notes: **A "chikan" is basically a pervert, someone who gropes others (doesn't just have to be young girls) in large crowds: i.e., walking down a crowded street, at a restaurant, on a train. Inappropriate touching is a big problem in Japan, but it happens so often that it's hard to catch someone in the act, report, & prosecute them. 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: These are not my characters, but I try to keep them as close as the author would have written when I write them into things. Either way, don't throw money, just review.

* * *

Takashi meandered toward the train station. In the past month, so much had happened on the train. Every day he got to see Haruhi, but there wasn't any time to talk. With the train already filled to the brim with people and noise, it was hard to have a conversation. Not to mention that they were usually squashed up against each other uncomfortably. One day Haruhi happened to mention that the train ride to school in the morning was much more pleasant even though it was horrendously early. Takashi pondered for a few days, then made Haruhi's morning train even more pleasant. It wasn't that bad getting up early in the morning. At least there was time to work out a little in the company gym before he had to get to doing the little work he had.

The look on her face the first day had been worth it. "Mori-sempai!" she had declared. "Isn't this too early for you?" He had responded in the negative, and that had been enough for her. She seemed to know that Mori did not mind, and Mori was sure that anyone who had gotten to know her would do the same as he had.

"Mori-sempai!" Haruhi waved through the crowd while hefting her heavy bookbag onto her shoulder. Takashi smiled. Today he was going to tell her. "How was work today, Mori-sempai?" she asked happily as Takashi lifted her bag away from her and moved an arm to part the crowd slightly so they could get to the train when it arrived.

"Haruhi."

She blinked up at him.

"It has been almost 4 years since I was your sempai. Please call me Takashi."

"WHAT?" Haruhi shouted. The train had out-screeched everyone in the station and had totally eclipsed Takashi's quiet request.

They were squashed up against each other, Mori's arm around Haruhi's waist to shield her from the rest of the train, before they had a chance to speak again. "I'm sorry, sempai, what were you saying before?"

"It has been 4 years since-"

_ Da da dana nana na, da da dana nana na, dana dana dana da tada tada!_

Takashi only had a cell phone so that Mitsukuni could call him. He didn't use it other than that, so of course he had let Mitsukuni choose his own ringer. The day he had gotten his cell phone, Mitsukuni happened to fancy _The Chicken Dance_.

"Yeah."  
"Takashi!" Haruhi could almost hear the sparkles surrounding Hani as he greeted his friend. "Takashi! Takashi!"

"Mitsukuni."

"Takashi! I have news!" Haruhi leaned closer to the phone to hear, and closer to Takashi's face. "Remember Shuna? The girl my father doesn't like?"

"Yeah." Haruhi raised her eyebrow.

"I asked her to marry me! Are you on your way home? You should come and meet her right now!"

"I don't think we're on the correct line, Mitsukuni."

"When you get home, bring a car!"

"What did he say, Mori-sempai? I couldn't hear him," Haruhi asked right next to Takashi's mouth, and the train helped romantic comedy style by lurching Takashi at Haruhi. They clashed teeth and Haruhi grabbed at her chin anticipating a fat lip, and the laws of romantic comedies were very disappointed.

"TAKASHI!!"

"Mitsukuni."

"Was that Haruhi! Bring her with you! We're having dinner! Be here in an hour!"

The line was dead.

"Are you all right?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran, nor any of its characters, but I do own Shuna. She's wonderful, isn't she?

* * *

"Sempai, are you sure this is all right? I feel like I should have gone home to change before coming here," Haruhi looked up from a brief she was studying and glanced at the gates of the Haninozuka estate as they passed through.

Takashi smiled.

"I haven't seen Hani-sempai since..." she frowned and looked back down at her brief.Takashi put his hand on her head, a concerned look on his face. If it hadn't been for their meeting on the train, their last meeting would have been at Tamaki's graduation party as well.

Haruhi's hand went to her lower lip again, and again she tilted her head up toward Takashi. "Are you sure it's not swelling?"

Takashi blushed. "I'm sorry about that," he apologized again. "Would you like some ice?" He reached toward the limo's bar, but Haruhi waved him off.

"It wasn't your fault, Mori-sempai," she said. "It just hurts a little, that's all."

The car came to a stop as Takashi opened his mouth a third time to say what he had been determined to say all evening. "It has been almost--" but the door to the car was flung open.

"HARU-CHAN!!!" Takashi was aware that his cousin had grown several inches since high school and was now well on his way to 6 feet, but that didn't stop him from leaping into the car and onto Haruhi's lap.

"Hani-sempai!"

"Oh, Haru-chan, it's been years since high school! Call me Mitsukuni or just Hani at least. I'm not your sempai anymore!"

Takashi exited the car from the opposite door as it was held open by his driver, slightly annoyed that his cousin could say easily what he had worked up his courage for several days to say. The eager Mitsukuni tugged Haruhi out of the car and in the front doors of the house. Haruhi glanced back at Takashi, and he smiled at the scene. He knew that Haruhi must have been feeling a little strange, being hauled around by the same Hani-sempai that she used to bend down to speak to.

It took him a while to catch up, as he stopped by the formal dining room to greet Mitsukuni's parents and younger brother, but when he found his way to Mitsukuni's rooms, he found Haruhi engaged in conversation with a beautiful girl while Mitsukuni bounced around offering tea and a plethora of cakes to the ladies.

"Shuna-yan, Shuna-yan!" Mitsukuni put down the cake he was holding and grabbed her hand. Takashi bowed to the girl as she stood and paid him the same courtesy. "This is my cousin Takashi!"

"It is wonderful to finally meet you, Takashi-san," Shuna said, blushing a little. "I hear so much about you every day."

"Pleased to meet you," Takashi said, and Mitsukuni went back to his cake proffering as everyone else returned to the couches.

"Your ring is very beautiful," Haruhi commented, and Shuna looked at the object on her finger.

"Yes, I had to convince him I didn't want something fancy," she said, blushing. Takashi glanced, and had to admit that the princess cut solitaire on her finger did not look like Mitsukuni's style at all. She laughed and continued, "but you should see my wedding band. I think when I start wearing it my arm will get heavier!"

Takashi smiled and looked over at his cousin.

"How did you two meet?" Haruhi asked.

"Mitsu-kun," Shuna smiled, looking over her shoulder at her fiancé. "Enough with the cakes for now, we're fine! Haruhi-san wants to know how we met."

The cakes were forgotten as Mitsukuni's face lit up. Takashi smiled, happy that his cousin found someone who could make his face light up like it always had.

"My car broke down!" he declared, putting his arm around Shuna. "It was raining and dreary and my driver took the umbrella and left me in the car and went to call for help across the street." Haruhi leaned forward and Takashi looked at her, wondering why she had never looked that interested in any love story at the Host Club. "Shuna came along with the most beautiful umbrella!"

Shuna laughed. "It was the umbrella?"

"Of course not," Mitsukuni smiled, perhaps for the first time in his life looking shy. "You are beautiful too." The couple blushed at each other. Haruhi was smiling and Takashi blushing into the distance when Mitsukuni got back to his story. "So, Haru-chan, can you guess what happened next?"

"You fell madly in love?"

He laughed. "She invited me to come in from the rain to her apartment which was..." he glanced at Shuna.

"Only about a block away," she said.

"So I went, and guess what happened!"

Haruhi laughed and guessed, "you fell madly in love?"

"Well yes," Mitsukuni said laughing, "but I discovered something wonderful! Besides being the most beautiful woman in the world and sweet and funny, Shuna-yan is a professional pastry chef!"

Takashi laughed aloud. Shuna truly was Mitsukuni's dream girl.

"Did you make all these?" Haruhi asked, her eyes widening at the huge display of cakes on the table.

"Well, I had help," she blushingly admitted, "Mitsu-kun and I are looking for the perfect cake for our wedding. Would the two of you like to taste a few and give us your opinion?"

Takashi knew that the only person's opinion that really mattered had probably already tasted all of them. Haruhi's stomach growled.

"Maybe dinner first?" Mitsukuni offered, laughing.

During dinner Takashi realized how much he really had missed his cousin. He supposed that he could spend more time with Mitsukuni and his fiancé if he made use of his car to get back and forth to work, but when he heard Haruhi laugh, he reconsidered the convenience of the train.

"You really should bring your girlfriend over more often, Takashi-san," Shuna commented as the four were eating their cakes after dinner. "Right, Mitsu-kun?"

Shuna looked bewildered into the faces of the other three people in the room during the ensuing silence. Mitsukuni had stopped mid-bite and was staring amazed at the blushing Takashi and Haruhi across the table, looking for a response as to whether or not the pair were a pair.

"Have I said something wrong?" Shuna began. "I hope I haven't offended--"

"It's all right, Shuna-san," Haruhi said quietly. "We're all just friends from high school, Mori-sempai and I take the train together, and I was just there when Han--um, Mitsukuni-san called."

"I'm so very sorry to have presumed!" Shuna blushed, and bowed several times in apology.

As Haruhi reassured Shuna that she wasn't offended, Takashi looked at his cousin. Mitsukuni returned to the cake on his fork, and then gave Takashi a look he had never seen before. It was almost accusing, but it was gone as his sparkles returned and he gave Takashi a knowing wink.

"Thank you for coming, it was wonderful to meet you both," Shuna said, holding Haruhi's hands as they said goodbye at the door to the house. Mitsukuni was on his cell phone, trying to ascertain the whereabouts of Takashi's driver. "I apologize for my earlier assumption," Shuna continued, leaning down next to Haruhi's ear, "but he really does seem closer than a high school friend, like he's your protector."

Haruhi smiled. "He's like that."

Shuna laughed and gave Haruhi a quick hug. "I hope we can be become better friends in the future!"

"Me too," Haruhi agreed, as Mitsukuni snapped his phone shut.

"Well, your driver went home. He thought that you were spending the night. I'll get my driver to take you."

"Or you could spend the night, couldn't they, Mitsu-kun?" Shuna said, clutching Mitsukuni's arm.

"Would you like to stay?" he asked Takashi.

"Ah..."

"I'm sorry, but I have some homework at home, and I have to be getting to class very early tomorrow," Haruhi said.

"There is a train station not far from here," Takashi commented.

"Ah, yes, the train," Shuna smiled knowingly.

"Is it close enough to walk, Mori-sempai?"

He nodded.

"Well then, we'll see you two another time!" Mitsukuni declared, grabbing Shuna's hand and waving. "Hopefully sooner than later!"

As Takashi and Haruhi walked away, Shuna turned and smiled up at her fiancé. "Don't worry about them, Shuna-yan," he said, smiling after his cousin. "If they are not together now, maybe someday they will be."

* * *

"-yan" is a cutesy form of "-chan." When Hani calls Shuna "-yan," he's basically calling her by a pet name in the honorific. Literally something like "Shuna-honey." I've also seen "-tan" used the same way. I think that for Shuna, shortening Mitsukuni's name when she says it is cutesy enough. 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran and I have never been to Tokyo, much less waited at Hachiko. But I have read enough to know that it's a good meeting place for anybody. Google it.

Author's Note: Yes, the first part of this _was_ Chapter 15 of Every Time I See You...

* * *

Morinozuka Takashi was sitting on a bench at Hachiko. He had been sitting there for what seemed like forever. People came and went, mothers with their children, high school students, and the occasional couple. Mori let them all pass by. He waited.

He had been waiting his whole life. He thought fondly of his days in high school, and of the Host Club, and of the girl who had mixed it all up.

He thought about her hair, her eyes, and the way she laughed at the antics of the Host Club members. He had recently realized he had been waiting for all of his life.

_Some things are worth waiting for,_ he thought, _even if you have to wait forever._

She walked out of Hachiko-guchi, spotted him, and waved. "Mori-sempai!"

Morinozuka Takashi's waiting was over.

"I'm sorry to call you away from work," she began when she reached him. "I have a couple of hours before my next class, and I should probably be in the library studying, but..." she paused and looked up at him, then suddenly blushed and looked away.

Takashi blushed in response on reflex, wondering what he'd done to make her react that way. He was about to apologize or ask if she was all right when she continued speaking as though she hadn't stopped.

"I thought of a wonderful gift idea for Ha-...Mitsukuni-san and Shuna-san. I hoped you would agree to help me make sure it's perfect, Mori-sempai."

"Haruhi," he began, hoping to alter the way she spoke to him as his cousin had the evening before.

"I'm sorry, it's very presumptuous of me to call you away from a busy day at work just for this."

"I wasn't busy," he insisted. "It's..." he paused, wondering how he could be bold enough to tell her that it was always nice to see her anytime when he couldn't even ask her to stop calling him "sempai." The adorably nervous look on her face banished whatever inner argument he was having with himself until later. "I'd love to help."

She smiled.

They shopped. Takashi wasn't sure why he was necessary, since Haruhi seemed to know exactly where to find the very thing she wanted, and the whole ordeal probably took less time than Takashi had spent at Hachiko waiting for Haruhi to arrive.

She held up her purchase for his inspection. This, he decided, must have been why she needed him. "What do you think, Mori-sempai? Isn't it perfect?"

"Mitsukuni will like it," he said approvingly, and the beaming smile Haruhi gave him made rescheduling the meeting he'd had to miss completely worth it. He didn't even care that everyone else that had been planning to attend the meeting was annoyed at him.

She beamed at him again when he offered to ride the train back with her to school. "I'll be fine, Mori-sempai, thank you," she said. "The train isn't nearly as crowded this time of day as it will be when I see you later."

"I'll see you later, then," he said. If he were Mitsukuni, he could also have said something nonchalant like, "oh by the way, you can drop the 'sempai,'" but he wasn't Mitsukuni.

"Are you free on Saturday?" she asked as they walked back toward the station. "I was hoping you could help me a bit more with the gift, and then we could..." she cleared her throat and said in a slightly higher pitched voice, "we could give it to them."

He agreed nonchalantly, but her blush and smile made him wonder, and it wasn't until he was waving goodbye to her that he realized that she may have been putting a deeper meaning on the "we" than he had noticed at the time.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran, nor have I ever been to Tokyo to ride on a train.

* * *

On Friday afternoon, Haruhi gave Takashi her address. On Saturday morning he arrived with a basket of strawberries and they had a wonderful day together, discussing which recipes the couple would like best and even searching the internet for a few more ways to make cake that their friends might enjoy.

Again, Takashi felt slightly superfluous as he watched Haruhi leaf through her mother's cookbooks and diligently copy ingredients and instructions down into the adorable recipe book she had purchased. But he made more tea when hers went cold, and ordered sushi when dinnertime neared, and enjoyed the look on her face when he told her he'd ordered extra ootoro.

It was a bit late when she finished, but a quick call to Mitsukuni made it clear that it wasn't too late for visiting, so Haruhi and Takashi set off together toward the train station.

They were met by the rather formally dressed couple at the front doors of the estate, and presented their gift. Shuna looked a little preoccupied, but smiled gratefully and gave both Takashi and Haruhi a hug, tearfully declaring that she couldn't wait to use it to make delicious things for Mitsu-kun in their kitchen. Mitsukuni asked both Haruhi and Shuna to wait while he took Takashi to greet his parents, and as he and his cousin walked away, Takashi glanced back at Haruhi, who had put her arm around Shuna and asked her what was wrong.

"Shuna-yan is upset," Mitsukuni told his cousin quietly. "My father is also, but is taking out his anger at my decision to marry her on both of us, instead of just me."

As they reached the door to his uncle's rooms, Takashi pointed out to his cousin, "you are angry. Your father is angry. Shuna is in the middle." Mitsukuni stopped scowling momentarily and looked up at him, so he clarified. "She can see that your father doesn't like her. Your anger does not help."

This seemed to sober Mitsukuni up, and they had a very quick and pleasant visit with the head of the Haninozuka family. Takashi's uncle even smiled through it, except for a brief scowl when Takashi spoke of Shuna as "a wonderful addition to the family."

When they returned, Haruhi stepped out of the car she had been sitting in with Shuna, and she and Takashi declined to be dropped off on Mitsukuni's way to take Shuna home. Instead, they turned and walked back toward the train station.

Haruhi was pensive as they walked toward the gates of the Haninozuka property. As they passed through them, she looked up at them and sighed.

"Haruhi...?" Takashi began, hoping to find out what troubled her.

"Mitsukuni-san and Shuna-san went to ask for permission to marry, you know," she said. "That's why both of them were so dressed up. Tonight they asked Mitsukuni-san's parents if they could set a date for their wedding."

"Mitsukuni's father wanted to choose his bride, but Mitsukuni found Shuna on his own."

"I know," Haruhi nodded. "Shuna-san was upset because she didn't want to be the means of separating Mitsukuni-san from his father."

"I told Mitsukuni as much," Takashi replied.

"Did you?" Haruhi asked, surprised. At his smile and nod, she beamed up at him, and said, "Mori-sempai, you really are wonderful!"

Takashi couldn't think of a better segue to finally ask Haruhi to call him by his first name, but the bustle of getting onto the train delayed him a little. Then he realized that the only thing delaying him was his own irrational self, and opened his mouth again to ask her.

"Haruhi," he began, as she took hold of a pole near the door of the car. The train wasn't as crowded as that first time they'd run into one another, but most of the seats were taken by people headed home from work and an occasional student.

The doors of the train shut, and Haruhi interrupted him.

"I haven't thought this through," she said. "Shuna-san was very emotional tonight, and I'm afraid it rubbed off on me a little."

"Are you all right?" he asked, laying his hand on her shoulder, but she continued, still half talking to herself.

"Shuna-san is going to hang in there, and so will I. Love conquers all. Good luck, Shuna-san!"

"Haruhi." She looked up at him and seemed to notice that she had been speaking aloud. Then she glanced around at the other occupants of the car, blushed, took a deep breath, and squared her shoulders.

"Mori-sempai, I have something to say to you."

"I have something to ask you, too," he replied.

She deflated a little. "Do you mind if I go first?" she asked hesitantly.

He smiled. "Go ahead."

"I know that life is hard in different ways for different people. For the rich, it's hard to marry the person you love, because your parents might not approve of your choice. For the poor, it's hard to marry the person you love, because you might not have enough money to support one another or pay for a wedding. If you look hard enough, you can find problems in any situation. What's important is that you are with the person that you love, no matter what." She stopped to take a few steadying breaths, her face turning a deeper shade of red as she did. Then she reached out and took one of his hands in hers. "Mori-sempai," she said, looking into his eyes, "I can't promise you the world. I can't promise you wealth, comfort, or even happiness. But I can promise you one thing: no matter what happens, you will always be loved."

Takashi was sure that his face was as red as Haruhi's, and he caught the smirk on the face of a nearby passenger.

"Haruhi," he said, smiling down at her and squeezing her hand, "If you're going to confess to me, shouldn't you at least call me Takashi?"


End file.
